conse ot tp sen eat mp - — . rm = mtn m——— eH a BAR Na Ta Dallas, PA Wednesday, March 16, 1994 4 The Dallas Post The Dallas Post An unthinking press drives Whitewater For years, self-styled conservatives have accused the press of harboring a liberal bias, claiming the media unthinkingly attack ideas and individuals dear to the hearts of those on the right of the political spectrum while ignoring the faults and failures of the left. This was a particularly plaintive cry when Republicans occupied the White House for three consecutive terms (which was a longer streak than Democrats have enjoyed since FDR) and were the subject of criticism. But now the tables have turned, and the Media (capital M for their supposed influence) have been drawn into the investigation of the Clin- tons’ involvement in the Whitewater development, a failed real estate deal that began 16 years ago. In the process, the large newspapers and broadcast net- works that some believe lead opinion in the nation have shown they are instead blind followers eager to go wherever the whiff of potential scandal may lead. And Mr. Clinton's opponents have used a not so subtle tack to push them ahead. Their constant whining about how easy the press has been on the President has undoubtedly spurred otherwise intelligent edi- tors and reporters to forge ahead with no apparent evidence of wrongdoing. Nothing of substance has thus far been reported that indicates anything beyond a bit of greed and errors of judge- ment as the Clintons tried to extract themselves from a deal gone bad. Even the much-maligned meetings between then White House counsel Bernard Nussbaum, other administra- tion officials and banking regulators were not out of line in such a case. It is common practice for attorneys to ask for and receive updates on the status of an investigation. You would certainly expect your lawyer to do so if you were the subject of an inquiry. An article in last Sunday’s New York Times provided the best clue to why this story is being overplayed. It's theme wasn’t whether or not Whitewater represents a substantive challenge to constitutional government, but if it would capture the public's imagination. “Into which category will Whitewater fall?” the author asked. “The most recent polls suggest it is too early to tell.” There you have it; editors no longer take any responsibility for what they put on the top of the front page. Instead, they stick a finger in the wind, judge the direction and force, and assign reporters accordingly. This much is factual without doubt: Whitewater is a minor scandal which poses no threat to our democracy. It is not at all like Watergate, in which a sitting President actively partici- pated in attempting to subvert an election and then in covering up his actions and those of his aides. And it isn’t like Iran- Contra, when American policy was handed over to a secret band of minor officials and assorted international criminals for the purpose of circumscribing the will of Congress. One other critical difference: the President and his aides are cooperating fully with the special prosecutor, not stonewalling, evading or claiming executive privilege. Make nomistake about it, Whitewater is at its core a partisan attack and apparently little more. Most Americans understand that, and are willing to accept a President who made a few mistakes earlier in his career, and will surely make more, as will all of us! Publisher's notebook Perhaps our visit to Washington to attend a newspaper conference led to the national theme of this week's editorial. We were at the Government Affairs Conference of the National Newspaper Association, an annual event. Included was a reception at the White House, with a short address from the President and Mrs. Clinton and the chance to meet them briefly. It was a real treat for our children, Katie, 7, and Carl, 4. Carl planned what he would say to the President, and kept his composure well enough to do so. Mr. Clinton responded to Carl's remark, “I really like your house,” with thanks and a reminder that it’s really everyone's house. Earlier, Katie and two newfound friends had danced up a storm in the front foyer. We were there for more than two hours, and had the run of the State Dining Room, Red Room, Blue Room, and Green Room before being admitted to the East Room for the President and Mrs. Clinton's arrival. It is a magnificent building and perfectly maintained, as you would expect. But it’s surely not energy efficent, with many windows still the original wavy, single pane glass. A series of conservation measures was announced in the next day’s papers. : Both Mr. and Mrs. Clinton looked fit and relaxed, although the strain of the job showed on both of them. He was in a jubilant mood, having just watched Arkansas beat Georgia in league basketball playoffs. It will be a shame if the current passion to destroy our leaders discourages young people frcm entering politics. No matter which side of the aisle you're on, or what your idealogical bent, politics can and should be a high calling. The time will come when we again appreciate the contributions government makes to our lives. Good, committed people are necessary to its functioning. (XX J : Those who are convinced the press is a bastion of liberalism would have been pleasantly surprised at this crowd. Among the remarks I overheard when the Clintons arrived was a man to his wife, “He's still our President, dear.” A middle-age woman in the crowd had this inappropriate wisecrack as Hillary worked her way down the line. “Watch out for her; she’s real slick.” I'm glad I finally outgrew the juvenile temptation to say things like that. Apparently this woman has not. Ron Bartizek yn i) Vv MN #7 0 Ns Br Yt (lr & a \ 74 7 / ey AA J Ve ) Y A \th \W . \ 8 En Nn lif AA ? | $e Sk Why | i x Sle = ) ih A. Case for conservation Spring will be perfect for planting trees By ALENE N. CASE Believe it or not, there is one good thing that will come from all this snow - we cannot possible have a dry spring. Since soil moisture will be high, this is defi- nitely a good year to plant trees. So, while you pick out seeds for petunias and squash from those marvelous catalogs that make you ache to garden, why not also order a tree or shrub? This is one year we can all dare to daydream. Before you visit a nursery or look at a catalog, close your eyes and imagine your yard the way it could be. Do you see a large shade tree in the middle of it or perhaps a nice hedge along one side? Do you long for a riot of pastel colors in the spring or for the crimsons and yellows of au- tumn? Do you have a steep hill- side that needs stabilization? Or, do you perhaps want to be able to pick fruits from trees that have not been sprayed with chemical pesticides? Do you need places in your yard that would welcome birds and other interesting crea- tures? Does your house need shelter from the winds of winter or cool shade in summer? A few years ago I had a friend who confided that she couldn't bring herself to do any landscap- ing because her husband never knew from one year to the next where he would be working. They lived here for 10 years and their yard was just as bare when they sold the house as it was when they moved in! If she had planted a pine or spruce seedling in year one, they could have at least used it as a Christmas tree in year nine or ten. So, don't wait; start plant- ing. The secret to satisfying land- scaping is patience. Now that you have a picture in your mind, de- cide on a small piece of that pic- ture on which to begin. Buying - large trees can be very frustrating because large trees are more dif- ficult to transplant successfully; and, when they die, you lose more money. | suggest purchasing seedlings from a reputable com- pany. Depending on the type of plant, seedlings cost between $1 and $20 each. The more expen- sive ones are generally fruit trees or exotic flowers. If you know a good local nursery that does not “truckin” large shipments just for the selling season, select your tree carefully and follow all planting instructions. “The Best Way to Plant Trees” is available for $3 from American Forests, P. O. Box 2000, Washington, DC 20013- 2000. If you can afford the initial expense, dwarf fruit trees are an excellent addition to any yard. They are loaded with blossoms in the springtime and generally begin bearing fruit in their second or third year after transplanting. Apples and pears do particularly well n this area. Cherries are nice but the birds tend to eat more than the people pick. Blueberry bushes are easy to care for, yield good food, and have spectacular: deep red foliage in-the fall: “All of thesesedibles should be planted well away from busy streets and highways. Many small fruit trees can be grown in large pots or barrels on patios and balconies. Shade trees include the usual oak and maples. Some catalogs give excellent information on types that thrive under certain condi- tions. for instance, red oaks are particularly tolerant of urban stresses such as polluted air, road salt, and dryness. Red maples, on the other hand, are exceptionally well suited to wet conditions. Other shade trees that add vari- ety to the landscape include the American sycamore, black gum, and ginkgo, Many of the stately ginkgo trees in Wilkes-Barre have been cut to make room for park- ing lots so you may not be familiar with this tree with the unique fan- shaped leaves. It grows very tall fairly slowly, is a beautiful yellow in the fall, and is not subject to insect pests or diseases. Black Walnut trees provide welcome shade without a lot of leaf-raking, bear nutritious nuts for humans and squirrels, and are an excellent investment in the future. Walnut lumber is always in demand at high prices. If you plant a grove of trees now, your great-grandchildren could harvest them to pay for their college edu- cation. One caution is in order, however: Black walnut trees should not be planted near your garden or other trees such as white pines. Their roots give off a substance that is poisonous to some other plants. Norway spruce is the fastest growing spruce. It grows tall and straight with graceful pendulous branches. It provides protection from winter winds and filters out pollutants and dust from road- ways quite effectively when the lower branches are allowed to remain on the tree. Other spruces and pines also make good wind- breaks. Plant them in rows about 50 feet from the north and west of your house..-As they grow and become crowded, you can thin them gradually by using one each year as a Christmas tree. Serviceberry and Washington hawthorn have beautiful masses of white flowers in the spring. The berries provide birds with suste- nance during a winter such as this. And, the Washington haw- thorn lends itself to trimming so that it remains a bush instead of atree. Its thorns are not nearly so wicked as those of barberry, which I consider a particularly unfriendly type of hedge. But, don't let me do all your looking for you! It's your yard and only you can decide what would best fit there. So, go get those catalogs and start dreaming. Ina few weeks, we'll all be out enjoy- ing the smell of damp earth and planting a part of the future. As | was saying... The Dallas Post Published Weekly by Bartsen Media, Inc. P.O. Box 366, Dallas PA 18612 Telephone: 717-675-5211 Ronald A. Bartizek Charlotte E. Bartizek Editor and Publisher Associate Publisher Peggy Young Grace R. Dove Advertising Acct. Exec. Reporter Paul Rismiller Olga Kostrobala Production Manager Classified/typesetting Jill Urbanas Office Manager MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION AND THE PENNSYLVANIA NEWSPAPER PUBLISHER'S ASSOCIATION Cab Calloway still in the 'Limelight' at 87 By JACK HILSHER There is a night club in New York City - the “Limelight” - where for fifty dollars you and a date could dance all night, have a champagne breakfast, enjoy a full orchestra show, and best of all - watch an 87-year old song and dance man ply his trade. His name: Cabell Calloway. Yes, the “Prince of Hi-de-ho,” born in Rochester on the 25th of December, 1907, is still working. Cab Calloway's glossy black hair is now snow white - so is the sporty tux - and the gleaming incisors may have a cap or two, but that vibrant baritone remains as electrifying as ever. Cab will be remembered for his scat-singing (and for “Minnie the Moocher,” which he wrote) but he also deserves to be remembered for what METRONOME critic Barry Ulanov wrote in '43: “Cab leads a band extraordinary in every aspect, in its clean musi- cianship, its jazz kicks, one of the magnificent bands of our time.” Authority George Simon agreed. Not at all surprising, for that band hadJonah Jones, Chu Berry, Ben Webster, Milt Hinton and Cozy Cole, all big-names-to-be spark- ing the typical makeup of 30's swing bands: three trumpets, three trombones, four reeds and four rhythm. It also helped that Calloway paid his men high sala- ries and gave them both security and recognition...this is an in- dustry not noted for either stabil- ity or good pay. In short, this was a happy band, and it showed, or rather, sounded. Cab even featured a young Dizzy Gillespie for a time, because he wanted to experiment with Latin music after hearing Cugat, and Gillespie claimed he could play “that Cuban stuff.” The Diz was also fooling with early bop, play- ing notes that other musicians thought were mistakes but which were actually advanced harmon- ics. This infuriated Calloway, who once yelled at Dizzy, “I don't want you playing that Chinese music in my band.” Milt Hinton said that traveling with the Calloway band was a first-class experience...it had its Do you agree? Disagree? Editorials are the opinion of the management of The Dallas Post. We welcome your opinion on contemporary issues in the form of letters te the editor. If you don't write, the community may never hear a contrasting point of view. Send letters to: The Dallas Post, P.O. Box 366, Dallas, PA 18612. Please include your name, address and a daytime phone number so that we may verify authenticity. We do not publish anonymous letters, but will consider withholding the name in ex- own Pullman car, and behind that a baggage car, and in the middle of that, Cab’s own personal Lin- coln. when the band left the train everyone else took taxis but Cab would put on his derby hat and coonskin coat, tooling that big shiny Lincoln off the baggage car and into town to the nearest hot spot. It is said that a White House party to commemorate Duke Ellington's birthday, President Nixon shook Cab’s hand heartily, wishing him a happy birthday, and gushed, “Pat and I just love your music Mr. Ellington.” Cab just grinned, thanked Nixon and moved on down the line. When asked recently how his career as a single has lasted through several generations of fans, Cab replied, “I'm a profes- sional entertainer, so I just keep going, keep going, keep going!” So you can be sure Minnie the Moocher, that “low-down hootchy- koocher” will still be “down in Chinatown, kicking the gong around,” for a long time to come. Let's hope so anyway. ceptional circumstances. We reserve the right to edit for length and grammar. Only ] yesterday O 60 Years Ago - March 23, 1934" AREA WOMAN WINS IN IRISH SWEEPSTAKES Plans were made this week for- a wide-spread campaign against diptheria in all schools of this section and during the next month- thousands of children will be given the toxoid treatment which guards them against the disease. no Cable dispatches on Wednes- (=) day informed Mrs. Louisa Frick, aged Harveys Lake resident, that" she had won 100 pounds sterling,” nearly $500 with her ticket in the- Irish Sweepstakes. The cable: gram informing Mrs. Frick of her" luck was from Dublin, Ireland. "- With alterations, interior deco- rations and installation of new equipment, Louis S. Wolfe and Charles W. Koons announced the” opening of Suburban Inn a week {9 from Saturday. The new enter:- prise will be housed in the Kunkle Building. aids! 50 Years Ago - March 17, 1944 HARD TIMES FOR AREA" RED CROSS DRIVE lh With more than one half of the month set aside for the Red Cross Drive gone, donations have: reached only $1,385.81 in they Back Mountain region or a little over one fourth of the quota of: $4,085. Mrs. Charles Wheaton Lee, colonel of the drive in Area 8, says that since the drive covers. the whole month, most solicitors .: have been slow in handing in® contributions. 0 Comerford theatre played host: to the Lehman basketball teams, after a grueling basketball sea- _ son. Players enjoyed “The Sulli- 9 1 vans” and the fellows accompa- « nied by their young ladies dined and danced the evening away a the Knotty Pine. ag You could get - Short ribs beef, « 21¢ Ib.; hams, 30¢ Ib.; cabbage, 5¢ 1b.; eggs, 35¢ doz.; Asco coffee 2-1.1b. bags 47¢. = 40 Years Ago - March 19, 1954 HADSALL FAMILY i | WELCOMES TRIPLETS There will be no Kick-off Din-. ner this year at Irem Temple , Country Club for the 9th Annual. Library Auction. This decision . was reached at the monthly meet-. ing of the Executive Board, but all - efforts will be bent toward making this year's Auction bigger than, ever with several added features. Tiny triplets born to Mr. and. Mrs. Carlton B. Hadsall are hold= 1 ing their own at Nesbitt Memorial «= Hospital according to reports: received just before going to press. Bruce Carlton weighted 3 lbs. 9- oz. at birth. Girls Barbara Carol J and Brenda Kathy were smaller; 3» Ibs. 9 oz. and 2 lbs. 14 oz. The’, triplets came as a surprise to the. parents who had counted on one! baby. ati Now playing “Easy to Love” with QD Esther Williams and VanJohnson = at the Himmler Theatre. A 30 Years Ago - March 19, 1964 POSTMASTER WARNS . AGAINST MAIL FRAUD Irem Shrine Circus plans are underway to transform the King- ston Armory from a drill shed into . a 3-ring arena; thel3th annual : edition of the Shrine Circus will £3 come to Wilkes-Barre for ning, performances, beginning April 15-.- 18. Noting that mail frauds filch millions from the public annually and are increasing, Postmaster. Buckley, Dallas urged that locdl; residents take care in responding * to solicitations from unknown. companies or to “offers too good to} be true.” Ky 20 Years Ago - March 21, 1974 2 K.T. VOTERS CONSIDER: HOME RULE CHARTER Kingston Township is destined: to almost change its system of" government completely if a report. on a proposed home rule chartér study is adopted in the May pri- mary, and that's what home rule charter chairman John Hibbard suggested. He also said the 0) commission recommends town- ship government be changed to council-manager form with a board of supervisors consisting of five members elected to four yedr terms. The township manager would be appointed by supervi- sors and would serve as head.of government. "5 Evidence of skyrocketing build- ing costs was apparent when bids were opened March 12 by the Lake-Lehman board for the reng- 9 vation of Lehman Jackson Ele- mentary School. The architects’ estimate for the project which will convert the elementary into a junior high school called for ex- penditures of $294,012; actual bids totaled $331,066. \, Mr. and Mrs. Ellis Swingle, Sterling Farms, Harveys Lake, will observe their 70th wedding anni- versary, March 24. Mrs. Swingle observed her 91st birthday in January. Mr. Swingle will be 90; March 27. ag { | | | i
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers